Photo by Cody Tomer Cameron’s Maci Neely fires a 3-pointer during Thursday’s state semifinal victory over Tucker County in Charleston.

CHARLESTON — The goal all season for the Cameron girls’ basketball has been to get back to the state championship and win it.

Well, they are halfway there.

The No. 2 Dragons punched their second straight trip to the WVSSAC Class A State Championship on Thursday with a 51-44 triumph over No. 6 Tucker County inside the Charleston Coliseum & Convention Center.

“Last year playing for a championship gave them a taste of what it’s like and it made them hungry to get back this year,” Cameron coach Holly Pettit said. “Our girls have worked hard and put in the time. They want to be there and cut down the nets. They have been ready since Day 1 of practice. They had a goal in mind and being here last year prepared them and (freshman) Maci (Neely) watched her sister.

“Kudos to Tucker County. They have a good ball team. People wanted to see this game because we have Ashlynn (VanTassell) (6-foot-2) and they have (Kadie) Colebank (6-1) – two powerhouse post players and hopefully it was fun for people to watch and luckily for us we came out on top.”

The Dragons’ biggest lead of the day came with 5:43 to play, leading 48-27. However, the Mountain Lions stormed back with a 13-0 march to cut the deficit to 48-40 with 1:15 remaining.

Nevertheless, the young Dragons remained composed on the game’s biggest stage as VanTassell knocked down three straight free throws to ice the game in the final 42 seconds to clinch a spot in Saturday’s state title game at 10 a.m. against No. 1 Gilmer County.

“We’re tough on these girls, especially when they make a mistake, because we know what they’re capable of,” Pettit said. “I called timeout (during Tucker’s 13-0 run) and told them, ‘This isn’t the way we play. You need to step up, take care of the basketball and be patient.’ When we went back in toward the end I thought we did a good job of that. It’s not our prettiest win but we’ll take it because we’re playing in the championship.”

The storyline coming into the game was the “Battle of the Bigs” as VanTassell tussled with Colebank. Colebank had set the state tournament record with 25 rebounds on Tuesday morning, only to see VanTassell reset the record at 31 four hours later.

The two battled hard early as Tucker led 8-6 after one but two fouls on Colebank in the second quarter caused coach Dave Helmick to be cautious with her.

“When I had to sit Kadie with two fouls – it’s tough to try to play the No. 2 team in the state without your best player,” Helmick said.

Tucker led 12-11 with 5:14 remaining in the half but the Dragons reeled off a 14-3 run to close out the second quarter and secure a 25-15 halftime cushion.

VanTassell had six points during the spurt, while Aubre Cain-Loy drained a 3 and added two free throws.

The Dragons also tallied 15 points off of turnovers in the second stanza.

“In the start of the second quarter we hit some 3s and they had some turnovers,” Pettit said. “They had three or four turnovers in a row and I thought that was the start of the change in the game.”

Cameron slightly extended its lead during the third but Tucker kept it within reach at 39-26 after three.

It wasn’t until early in the fourth that a 9-0 Cameron run, sparked by a 3-pointer from Gracie Carter, put the Dragons’ lead at 48-27 with 5:43 to go, before they withstood the Mountain Lions’ late rally.

“It got a little hectic in the fourth,” Pettit said. “But, we were patient enough with the ball and took care of it. I’m super proud of these girls.”

VanTassell finished with a double-double of 20 points and 13 rebounds, while her counterpart, Colebank tallied 11 points and 13 rebounds.

“It was a great matchup,” Colebank said. “She is a great player and she played a great game.”

Neely finished with 11 points for the Dragons, while Kenzie Clutter ran the offense brilliantly with eight points, 10 assists and only one turnover.

“I think my teammates kept their patience, got open, filled the gaps and cut very well,” Clutter said. “They were just able to get open and score.”

Pettit praised the sophomore for her selflessness.

“Kenzie is so unselfish,” Pettit said. “She is always looking to make someone else look better. That shows with her 10 assists and you can’t ask for anything more than that.”